Opera RAM Usage: How Much Memory It Uses & How to Limit It

Opera isn’t the most notorious browser for hogging large amounts of RAM. Yet, that doesn’t necessarily mean it can’t use up lots of system memory.

Some Opera users have complained in forum posts about high RAM usage for that browser. Those users have reported Opera hogging two to three gigabytes of system memory.

So, is your Opera browser hogging a bit too much RAM? If yes, you can limit its RAM usage with the methods below.

How much memory should Opera use?

Opera’s minimum memory system requirement is 512 MB RAM. That doesn’t mean it will always use more memory than that. You should be able to keep Opera’s RAM usage below one GB.

However, the best RAM limit for Opera GX depends on your needs. Being designed for gamers, this browser has a RAM limiter that can be tweaked to your requirements.

How do I tell how much RAM my Opera uses?

You can check RAM usage for Opera and other software in Windows 11/10 with Task Manager. You can open Task Manager by pressing Windows key + X and selecting its Power User menu shortcut.

The Processes tab in Task Manager shows all your active software. You’ll see a RAM usage figure for Opera in the Memory column.

Why does Opera/Opera GX use so much memory? Well, that depends strictly on the number of pages you open and their requirements.

Quick Tip:

With the GX Control in Opera GX, you can live check from the interface how much CPU and RAM are being used during the browsing session. It’s more manageable than the Opera normal browser.

You may also limit the traffic to reserve bandwidth for services that demand greater resources outside the browser. You will feel like a ship captain if you use Opera’s gaming browser.

Opera GX

Create your own browser commands and set resource limits for a balanced session.

Free Visit website

How do I make Opera use less memory?

Before starting with more complicated tweaking methods, let’s go through some basic means to restrict Opera’s memory usage:

• Close unneeded background tabs – The easiest way to make Opera use less memory is to close page tabs in that browser you don’t need open.
• Clear the browser’s cache – Like any other browser, Opera can get clogged with lots of history items and cache, and refreshing it will make it run smoother and consume less RAM.
• Install any updates – Make sure that Opera and your Windows system get updated regularly. Opera and Opera GX get automatic updates, but just in case, we have a guide on how to update Opera GX manually.

If these preliminary steps are insufficient to fix the problem, start performing the solutions below.

1. Add OneTab to Opera

1. Open Opera, go to the OneTab page in the Chrome web store and click Add to Chrome.
2. You will receive a warning that the extension was not verified by Opera but you can still click the Add extension button.
3. You will see that all the open tabs have been brought to OneTab so you can manage them.

OneTab is a Google Chrome and Opera extension that can reduce tab memory usage by 95 percent.

Pressing that OneTab button will move all open pages into a single OneTab tab. Moving pages to that tab will reduce Opera’s RAM usage. To send a single page, right-click the OneTab extension and select Send only this tab.

2. Disable background processes with Opera’s Task Manager

1. Click the red O (Opera) button at the top left of the browser.
   
2. Select the Developer menu.
3. Click Task Manager to view the window directly below.
   
4. Select a process, webpage, or extension there to disable.
5. Press the End process button.
   

Note that disabling more essential processes may cause some browser issues. However, it’s fine to disable high-memory pages and extensions with Task Manager.

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3. Disable JavaScript

1. Type the following line in Opera’s address bar and press Return: opera://settings
2. Click Site Settings to bring up page content controls.
   
3. Select the JavaScript navigation option from there.
4. Click the radio button for the Don’t allow sites to use JavaScript option.
   

4. Disable all extensions in Opera

1. Press the O menu button.
2. Move the cursor over the Extensions submenu.
3. Select the Extensions option.
   
4. Then press the Disable buttons for all enabled extensions.
   

Opera RAM usage vs Chrome

We haven’t directly tested and compared RAM usage for Opera and Chrome. However, it’s no secret that Google Chrome is one of the most system-resource-heavy browsers.

Opera isn’t necessarily the most system-resource-efficient browser, but it compares favorably with Chrome for RAM usage. We rate it among one of the 10 best lightweight browsers for Windows.

So, there are five surefire ways to reduce Opera’s RAM consumption. Reducing Opera’s RAM consumption with the above methods will free up memory for other active software and speed up your browsing.

There’s also an alternative Opera GX browser version worth noting. Opera GX is a different version of the same browser that incorporates a RAM Limiter feature with which you can reduce its memory usage.

Do you have any questions about reducing Opera’s RAM usage? If so, feel free to add them in the comments section below.